THE arrival of striker Simon Church at Huddersfield Town offers boss Simon Grayson some intriguing and valuable options.
Should a loan deal be tied up quickly with his parent club Reading, which would seem to be the hope, then he could go straight into the line-up at Barnsley to provide variation on the shape and make-up of the team.
At his dangerous best, the 23-year-old Wales international is a powerful, quick and has an eye for goal - and those are the qualities which have attracted Grayson to push for his signing to cover for (or play alongside) current loan duo James Vaughan and Jermaine Beckford plus the in-form Lee Novak.
The Town boss could play a front three at Oakwell, for instance, of Church, Beckford and Novak, whose two goals earned the 2-2 draw against Blackburn Rovers at the John Smith's Stadium.
That could present a midfield three of Keith Southern, Adam Clayton and Oliver Norwood, with Jack Hunt returning in the defence and either Paul Dixon or Calum Woods operating at left back alongside the central pairing of skipper Peter Clarke and Joel Lynch.
If Beckford misses out again, then Grayson could play Church and Novak as a front two with Sean Scannell and either Adam Hammill or Danny Ward out wide.
Scannell, too, with his extreme pace, could play in the 4-3-3 formation as the third frontman should Beckford (hamstring) miss out, while Novak could also operate out wide in a 4-4-2 were the boss to opt for Church and Beckford as a central two.
It's encouraging for the boss as well that Alan Lee made such a big impact in the latest match and he has bags on experience and know-how when needed.
It seems significant that Grayson has told the Examiner: "There is a deadline of November 22 and we have got to make sure we are fully covered in the squad for that period when you can't sign anybody.
"If it means taking a couple of extra bodies on board to see us through that difficult Christmas period then so be it."
Grayson knows he has the full backing of chairman Dean Hoyle to do what's necessary to keep Town plugging along at the top of the Championship, and perhaps this move for Church signals a longer spell on the sidelines than would have been hoped for for the unfortunate Vaughan.
Should the prognosis on his troublesome thigh injury mean he's likely to be out for, say, a month or six weeks, then cover is essential for exactly that period Grayson has earmarked.
While everyone hopes Vaughan can get back as quickly as possible, because he's been a breath of fresh air with his workrate, goals and quality, if he hasn't played much football in the build-up to Christmas, it's a big ask to catapult him into a busy spell and series of quickfire games.
Church may also have to carry the burden should Novak - who didn't train in the build-up to the Blackburn game and regularly wears cycling shorts in matches - need a spell out or should Beckford, who failed a fitness test before the visit of Rovers, continue to be dogged by his injury.
One this is certain, Church will be desperate for first-team football - just like Vaughan and Beckford - and he'll be eager to impress so that his Madejski Stadium boss Brian McDermott, who has just pushed former Town loan man Sean Morrison into his Premiership line-up, takes note.
Church made 36 appearances last season during their Championship promotion season, scoring seven goals.
This term, he has played just five times – once for Reading in the Capital One Cup – the others being three World Cup qualifiers and a friendly international dating back to August.
